Antibiotic showdown: which drug works best for staph blood infection?
NCT ID NCT03248063
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study compared two antibiotics, cloxacillin and cefazolin, in 315 adults with a serious bloodstream infection caused by methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA). The goal was to see if cefazolin works as well as cloxacillin, the standard treatment, while potentially having fewer side effects and being easier to use. The main measure of success was a combination of survival, clearing the infection, and no relapse at 90 days.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Cloxacillin and cefazolin (antibiotics)
- What this could lead to
- If cefazolin works as well as cloxacillin, doctors may have a safer, more reliable option for treating this serious bloodstream infection.
- What could go wrong
- This is a completed trial, so results are available. However, the study is relatively small (315 participants) and open-label, which can introduce bias. The findings may not apply to all patient groups.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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315 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Sep 2018
- Finished
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Mar 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Age above 18 years 2. Blood culture positive to MSSA identified by standard bacteriologic techniques or by GeneXpert PCR Exclusion Criteria: 1. Previous type 1 or grade 3 - 4 according to CTCAE hypersensitivity reaction to beta-lactams 2. Known pregnancy or breastfeeding women 3. Parenteral antimicrobial therapy active against MSSA for more than 72 hours after the positive SA blood culture ponction 4. Chronic renal failure defined by a glomerular filtration rate estimated \< 30 mL/min/1,73m². 5. Presence of an intra-vascular implant (vascular or valvular prosthesis or cardiovascular implantable electronic device) 6. Patient with implanted material considered to be infected by SAMS and whose antibiotic treatment is longer than 70 days 7. New cerebro-spinal signs in the preceding month 8. Clinical examination compatible with recent stroke (\<1 month), brain abscess or meningitis 9. Current other antibiotic therapy which cannot be ceased or substituted by study treatment 10. Mixed blood culture with more than one pathogen (excluding contaminants: Corynebacterium sp., Propionibacterium sp., Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci) 11. coagulapthy with TP\< 50% (excepted for patients under avk anticoagulant treatment) 12. Absence of written informed consent from the patient 13. Limitation of care with expected life duration below 90 days 14. Patient under guardianship or trusteeship 15. No affiliation to social security (beneficiary or assignee) 16. Subject already involved in another interventional clinical research evaluating a medicinal product Secondary exclusion criteria: 1. Diagnosis of meningitis made after randomisation 2. Diagnosis of brain abscess made after randomisation 3. Diagnosis of multiple infection made after randomisation
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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François-Xavier Lescure
Paris, 75018, France